IDENTITY STATEMENT
Reference code(s): GB 0074 CLC/L/GA
Held at: London Metropolitan Archives
Title: WORSHIPFUL COMPANY OF GARDENERS
Date(s): 1605-2010
Level of description: Collection
Extent: 86 production units
Name of creator(s): Worshipful Company of Gardeners
CONTEXT
Administrative/Biographical history:
There is a reference to an organisation of gardeners in 1345. By the time of the granting of the Company's first charter in 1605, it was fully in control of its trade. By the mid 19th century the company was in abeyance, but it revived in the 1890s. It received its grant of arms in 1905.
In recent years, the company has been notable for running a number of campaigns and competitions in the City of London including the Flowers in the City Campaign and the Winter Colour Competition. It also continues the tradition of providing bouquets and flowers for members of the Royal family and for Royal occasions.
CONTENT
Scope and content/abstract:
Records of the Worshipful Company of Gardeners. The archives date from 1605, however, the early membership records are patchy, and the court minutes do not begin until the second half of the 18th century. The archive is not large, but it is notable for a series of scrapbooks recording the history of the company since 1345, begun by the company in 1934 and continuing to the present day.
IMPORTANT INFORMATION REGARDING ACCESS: These records are stored at the Guildhall Library site rather than the LMA Clerkenwell site. Researchers wishing to access these records should do so at the Guildhall Library Rare Books table. The Library is open Monday to Saturday, 9:30 to 16:45. Researchers will need to have an Archives History Card or a Library Readers Card. An archivist will be available at Guildhall Library on Thursday mornings to answer any queries.
ACCESS AND USE
Language/scripts of material: English
System of arrangement:
To assist the user, the catalogue has been arranged in sections each with an archival classification code as follows: A: Constitutional records; B: Court records; C: Membership records; D: Financial records; F: Clerk's records; G: Charities and estates. Catalogued by various members of staff over many years.
Conditions governing access:
These records are available for public inspection, although records containing personal information are subject to access restrictions under the UK Data Protection Act, 1998.
IMPORTANT INFORMATION REGARDING ACCESS: These records are stored at the Guildhall Library site rather than the LMA Clerkenwell site. Researchers wishing to access these records should do so at the Guildhall Library Rare Books table. The Library is open Monday to Saturday, 9:30 to 16:45. Researchers will need to have an Archives History Card or a Library Readers Card. An archivist will be available at Guildhall Library on Thursday mornings to answer any queries. For further information please see LMA Research Guide "Consulting Archives at Guildhall Library", available at http://www.cityoflondon.gov.uk/Corporation/LGNL_Services/Leisure_and_culture/Records_and_archives/Visitor_information/free_information_leaflets.htm
Conditions governing reproduction:
Copyright: Depositor.
Finding aids:
Please see online catalogues at: http://search.lma.gov.uk/opac_lma/index.htm
ARCHIVAL INFORMATION
Archival history:
Immediate source of acquisition:
The archives of the Worshipful Company of Gardeners have been deposited in the Manuscripts Section of Guildhall Library at various dates since 1938. The Manuscripts Section merged with London Metropolitan Archives in 2008. The records have been catalogued by various members of staff over many years.
ALLIED MATERIALS
Related material:
The company library of printed books is deposited in the Printed Books Section of Guildhall Library.
Publication note:
For a history of the company see Melvyn Barnes, Root and branch: a history of the Worshipful Company of Gardeners (London, 1994).
For further information relating to Livery Companies, particularly using the company records for family history, please see Guildhall Library Manuscripts Section "Livery Company Membership Guide" and Guildhall Library Manuscripts Section "Leaflet Guides to Records: Searching for Members or those apprenticed to Members of City of London Livery Companies" (both available online).
For a general introduction to the history of the City of London Livery Companies please see entry in The London Encyclopaedia, ed Ben Weinreb and Christopher Hibbert.
DESCRIPTION NOTES
Date(s) of descriptions: Oct-09